Dutch police have uncovered what is being described as "the largest and most professional production location of crystal meth ever found in the Netherlands," not 15km from the Belgian border.
The discovery was made after an intensive investigation of encrypted chat messages. On raiding the premises, they found two linked warehouses. A 62-year-old Polish man was intercepted and taken into custody.
The raid took place in the night of Thursday to Friday, but the news has just been made known. According to local reports, a service specialised in inventarising and dismantling such facilities spent the rest of the night taking stock of what had been found.
A spokesperson for the service described it as the largest and most professional the country has ever seen. The haul of ingredients discovered by police is estimated at enough to produce 100kg of crystal meth a day, with a value of more than €1 million a day.
Now that the dismantling has begun, one officer estimated it might take the rest of the weekend.
"In view of size and size, this will certainly last until Sunday," they said.
The find was made in Nederweert, a town in the province of Dutch Limburg less than 15km from the border with the Belgian province of the same name.
Crystal meth, or methamphetamine, is a stimulant of the central nervous system that has few medical applications, but is produced in huge quantities by criminal interests. The drg was a major plot-point in the TV series Breaking Bad.
It is a mood enhancer in low doses, but can cause paranoia, psychoses and seizures in higher doses. And importantly, it is highly addictive, leading to the danger of compulsive use.
A local blog, Weert de Gekste, made video of the police raid:
